My Best Friend's Girl
by Deadly Poppy
Summary: How pathetic is that? That I’m not even sorry I stole my best friend’s girl before he even had a chance to go out with her. And I know he’s probably right, and I know that the spirits say he belongs with her, but I like her! So what if he imprinted on hrr
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, so if you've read a story with the same name on LadyBugGirl's profile, this is the same story. LadyBugGirl is me. She is me, and we are we. Together we is me. Am I making sense? No? Good. BUT, the last chapter, chapter 14 will be the last chapter, which I never posted on my other profile. So it's a brand new chapter that just might be a segway to the sequel! So review to tell me to hurry up finishing posting all the chapters, because I might not post them all at the same time. Bahahaha! I'm so mean!  
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**Anyway! I started thinking to myself, "What is one of the wolves imprinted, and the girl liked someone else?" Since I already like writing imprint stories, this idea just kept nagging at me until I sat down and pretty much planned out half the story in five minutes. So here goes!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything but a very strange colored aura...  
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Lacey's POV

First day at a new school. Crap. I hate new schools. Don't get me wrong, I want to make a good impression, but somehow I always manage to make a bad first impression. And those are really hard for some people to get over…

I sighed and opened my closet. I picked out my favorite shirt. It was white with a big picture of the Earth with eyes and a body, wearing a recycle shirt. Then I grabbed a pair of jeans. And my sister banged on my door. "Lacey!" she whined. "Hurry up! I don't want to walk to school alone!"

I rolled my eyes. "Wait two seconds okay?" I groaned. Why did Dad have to move us back to La Push? We left when I was only a baby, and I hadn't so much as visited since then. Dad said he needed a change of pace, but I knew the truth. He's been missing Mom more than ever. But why now?

"Lace!" Missy yelled. I groaned and rolled my eyes again, pulling a brush through my strawberry-blonde hair. My skin was light, with a faint hint of the Quileute's trademark russet skin, and my eyes were a dark brown, but my hair was definitely going to stand out here.

I opened my door, grabbing my "Save the Whales" messenger bag. Looking at my sister, I realized that if you had to pick the girl from La Push, you would pick my sister. With darker skin, long, dark brown hair, and chocolate brown eyes, she looked a lot more like our dad, whereas I took after our mother somewhat.

"Let's go!" Missy said, pulling me out the door. As soon as we weren't in the house anymore she let go of my arm. "Why are you wearing that?" she asked, eyeing my shirt.

I stuck out my chin defiantly. "I like it."

She snorted. "Well, obviously," she said. "But why?"

I ignored her the rest of the way to school.

When we got to school, we walked into the office to get our schedules.

"What classes do you have!?" Missy asked as soon as we got the little slips of paper. She compared mine to hers. "We don't have any classes together," she exclaimed happily. I rolled my eyes. Duh. I'm a Junior, she's a Sophomore. Of course we don't have classes together. I snatched my schedule from her and headed to where they said my locker was.

I put in the combination the lady in the office had given me. I heard something inside the locker click, signaling that I had given the right combination, but the door wouldn't open.

I jiggled the handle. Nothing. I pulled on it as hard as I could. Mother of fudge. Did the world hate me? I sighed.

"Need some help?" a voice behind me asked. I turned to see a really good looking guy standing behind me. He was tall, really tall, and looked like he was on freaking steroids. He has dark, cropped hair and deep brown eyes. I smiled slightly. "Sure," I said, "But I don't think it's opening," I said, with a small wave toward my locker, standing aside.

He grabbed the handle on my locker, jiggled it, and lifted the handle a little. After what looked like a lot of pulling, he got it to open.

"There," he said, grinning. "I opened it."

"Thanks," I said. "But maybe I should just ask the lady at the front for another locker.

The guy shook his head. "No more lockers," he said. "Like, seriously, that one was only vacant because nobody wants it."

I rolled my eyes. "Just my luck," I said.

"It's cool," he said. "I have this locker right here, so maybe I can help you out. I'm Brady by the way."

I smiled. "I'm Lacey."

Brady looked at the clock. "First period's going to start in a few minutes. We don't really have a bell system here, so we should get going. What class do you have?"

As it turned out, we both had the same English class first period, and he showed me how to get there.

After choosing my seat (Brady very conspicuously pointed to the seat next to him while pretending not to be looking. I rolled my eyes and sat there.), I listened to the teacher talk about a book I've already read for about five minutes before a note landed next to my elbow.

_Hi._

I looked at Brady who was, once again, looking very conspicuously in another direction. I rolled my eyes, again, and laughed.

Hi.

_Wanna sit with us at lunch?_

Us?

_Me and my friends._

Sure, it's not like I have anyone else to sit with.

_Gee, thanks._

I grinned. Then the teacher shot Brady a look and we didn't talk for the rest of the period.

Brady wasn't in any of my classes after that until History, the class before lunch. There were assigned seats in there, and Brady was on the opposite side of the room from me. I had talked to a couple of people in my other classes, but no one too interesting.

When the teacher dismissed us, Brady walked over to me. "Come on," he said. "I want you to meet my friends. He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me all the way into the cafeteria.

"Hey guys!" He said loudly, sitting in a seat at a table near the back and pulling me into the seat next to him. "This is Lacey! She's new!"

"Oh yeah, you're in one of my classes!" Another guy said. "I'm Seth."

As Brady introduced me to everyone, I realized that they all looked a lot alike. Tall, really, buff, with the same cropped black hair and brown eyes. But somehow they were all…different.

"And this is Jacob, and Embry, and Quil, and this is my buddy Collin. Collin? Hello, earth to Collin?"

Collin was staring at me with an unfathomable expression. It was almost…adoring? No, that couldn't be it. He didn't know me. But it was so strange. I realized I was staring back at him when Brady grabbed him by the arm and pulled him into the hallway.

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**Love it, hate it? Let me know! Please review, it helps keep me confident. PLEASE REVIEW!  
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	2. Chapter 2

Here's a new chapter for you! I love reviews, they keep me motivated

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. Geez, just rub it in my face why don't ya!!

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**Collin's POV**

It was a average day. Boring classes, disgusting cafeteria lunch. Except for one thing. There was a new girl. No big deal, right? I mean, we don't have new people often, but I didn't think much of it. I mean, I thought maybe one of the pack might imprint on her, but I didn't even consider the fact that I could imprint on her!

Until I did.

I didn't see it coming at first. I saw Brady walk in with a girl I didn't recognize, and I thought nothing of it. He was grinning from ear to ear, and she looked happy too. I thought he'd imprinted on her. I was all ready to congratulate him when suddenly, I get a good look at her face, and BAM! I was hooked. I was vaguely aware of him introducing her to us. All I really noticed was her name, Lacey. It was such a beautiful name.

I was staring at her when suddenly she noticed me. I was once again only vaguely aware of Brady talking to me. She was staring at me with a very confused look on her face. I got the feeling that I should drop my gaze, but I just couldn't stop staring at her.

Suddenly, I felt Brady grab my arm and practically drag me out into the hallway.

"Dud, you didn't!" He half-yelled. I hung my head.

"I cant believe this!" he yelled. "I like her!"

"But I imprinted on her!" I said in a desperate attempt to defend myself. "I cant help it, and you know that!"

"Well too bad!" he yelled back. "Because I'm still gonna ask her out!"

"Not if I ask her out first!"

"Guys!" Jacob yelled when he was walking into the hall. "Okay, so Collin imprinted on the girl Brady likes. Here's the deal: Neither of you asks her out for a week. And we're talking to Sam about this after school. Got it?"

We both glared at each other and nodded. Then we both walked back into the cafeteria. It almost killed me to see Brady sit next to her.

I sat down and made my attempt at conversation.

"Hey, Lacey, do you watch American Idol?" She looked at me strangely.

"No," she said simply.

I must have looked at her strangely, because she said, "American Idol pits people against each other, in a ridiculous search for the 'most talented', subjecting them to the emotional hurt of being rejected by the entire country."

I looked at her with what I assumed was a blank expression on my face. "Oh," I said. "I was just wondering because my sister watches it…" I mumbled, trailing off, embarrassed.

"So, Lacey," Brady said, turning towards her. "I saw that thing on the news about the protesters down at Forks Hospital."

"Oh yeah," I said, "I saw that too! They totally ruined that operation that girl was getting!"

Lacey and Brady looked at me blankly. "I was there," Lacey said. "I made a sign."

I felt my face turn red. "Oh," I mumbled. "That's cool…"

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What the hell?

That's what I asked myself as soon as school got out that day, on the way to Sam and Emily's. What the hell? Why did I have to imprint on Lacey? And why did Brady have to like her? And why did I have to freaking embarrass myself in front of her?

And why did she have to like my best friend?

There was no denying it either, that she liked him back. The way she laughed when he said things, and just gave me a blank stare when I spoke. And he liked her. And more than anything I just wanted her to be happy.

But why couldn't she be happy with _me_!? I had imprinted on her! couldn't Brady realize that I need to be with her? He's seen Jared with Kim, and Sam with Emily. He knows that they could never be away from their imprints. And it would kill them to see them with someone else. Why can't he understand that it's not my fault!?

I got to Sam and Emily's house and walked inside. The whole pack, plus Emily and Kim, was already there, waiting for me. I sat down on the couch.

"Okay," Sam said. "What's this all about?"

Me and Brady both started talking at the same time. He was trying to explain how much he liker her, and I was saying that it's not my fault I imprinted. Sam help his hand up to stop us.

"Jacob?" he said warily.

"Well," Jake started, "Brady met this new girl, Lacey, before school. They started talking, and they have first period together. Then he brought her to eat lunch with us. Collin saw her, and he imprinted on her. Then Brady dragged Collin out into the hallway, and I followed them. They argued about who got to ask her out, and that's when I told them that neither of them could ask her out until they talked to the whole pack."

Sam nodded thoughtfully. "This is a very…delicate situation," he said finally. Then the entire pack started arguing. Emily, Kim, and Leah were having a whispered conversation between the three of them.

"It's not Collin's fault he imprinted on her! He can't stay away from her!" Jared yelled.

"Well Brady's not being _forced _to like her!" That was Embry.

"I'm not being forced!" I yelled.

"Would you have noticed her if you hadn't imprinted?" Embry countered.

"Well, Collin can't help it if the spirits didn't want Brady to be with her!" Quil yelled.

"Hey!" Emily yelled. Everyone looked at her, surprised that she had spoken loud enough to interrupt the entire pack. All heads turned towards Emily, who was looking at Leah and Kim and nodding,

"I have a question," she bean. "You're all sitting here arguing about 'who gets the girl', well, does Lacey get a choice? Or are you just going to assume that she'll go along with whoever you idiots choose?"

Everyone was silent for a moment. Sam looked at Emily as if she was the most amazing, brilliant woman in the world. I just sighed loudly. Brady did the same. We looked at each other, but said nothing.

This was almost the worst part. Brady was my best friend. He had been my best friend since the fifth grade. I didn't want to lose my best friend, even over my imprint.

But it seemed like I was going to, and I couldn't stop it, because he wasn't more important than Lacey now. Except he was.


	3. Chapter 3

I smelled hamburgers cooking downstairs.

"Hey Dad," I said carefully, walking into the kitchen.

"Lacey," he said, his face serious. "I need to talk to you about this vegetarian thing."

I rolled my eyes. Here we go again. Dad and Missy were constantly badgering me to eat meat. "Dad," I said. "I'm not eating an innocent cow."

Now it was his turn to roll his eyes. "Lacey," he said. "This isn't healthy. I don't know what you can get protein from, or how much you need. Meat is healthy. You need to eat meat. I'm making hamburgers tonight," he finished, as if everything was decided.

"Dad," I said, my hands on my hips. "The cow never did anything to me. What if it had a name!? You could be cooking Bessie!"

"Bessie!" Missy yelled. "How original! A cow named Bessie! Forget the name, just eat the burger! It's delicious!"

"I'm sure a shark would say the same about you!" I yelled. "But are you willing to sacrifice your life so that shark can have a full meal? No!"

"Lacey!" my dad yelled. "You have to get over this! You can't do this just because you've named the cow! Just eat it!"

"Mom wouldn't!" The silence was deafening for a split-second, before I started yelling again. "Mom was a vegetarian! And she wanted to save the whales! And join the peace core! She would have cared about Bessie!"

And with that I grabbed my bag and ran out the door, heading toward the beach.

As soon as I was sitting on the beach, I pulled out my drawing pad and started to draw the ocean. The clouds. The weeds. The guy. Guy!?

"Lacey?" Brady asked. I sniffed and nodded. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing," I said, wiping the tears from my eyes.

He sat next to me. "Something's obviously wrong. You're crying."

"Okay, something is wrong, but I only met you today."

"So?"

"So I barely know you," I said.

"Well, my name's Brady, and I live with my mom and dad and younger brother, David. My best friend is-er, was-Collin…"

"Was?" I asked, looking at him.

"We got in a fight," he said, shrugging. "It's nothing." But it didn't seem like nothing.

"Anyway," he said. "No changing the subject. What's wrong?"

"Well," I replied. "It's my dad. And my sister. They are really, really unsupportive of me being a vegetarian."

"You're a vegetarian?" he asked, sounding surprised. I nodded.

"It's just that, my mom was a vegetarian," I said. "And she was in the peace core, and she helped save the whales, and Dad and Missy always just say she isn't coming back…" I trailed of, realizing I was going on and on and tears were streaming down my face.

"What happened to her?" he asked, sounding genuinely sympathetic and curios.

"She left," I said. "She said she couldn't take living n a house where people held her back. She couldn't have a family, and be a wife and mother. She needed to be free. So she just packed up her painting supplies, nothing else, and left. I was thirteen."

"Wow," he said. "That's…"

"It sucks," he finished for him.

"Yeah, pretty much." Then he looked at the notebook on my lap. "What were you drawing?" he asked, looking at my half finished sketch.

"The ocean," I said. "I guess I got my mom's artistic genes. I'm not nearly as good as her though."

"I wouldn't say that," he said, studying my drawing closely. "It's really good."

I smiled and blushed. "Thanks," I said. Oh my god. How can I like this guy? I've only known him one day! But he's so great!

"Crap," I exclaimed suddenly, realizing it was it was totally dark. "It's late, I have to go!" I shoved my sketch pad and pencils into my bag and stood up. "Bye Brady," I said, suddenly shy.

"Bye Lace," he said.

I started to walk away, then looked back and said over my shoulder, "Thanks."

I kept walking, but I hear Brady say, "Any time," As I was leaving.

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**So, what'd you think!?!? Tell me! Love it? Hate it? Favorite quote? Tell me! Click the review button! It's green!**


	4. Chapter 4

**When you guys review, please tell me who you're rooting for, because I'd really, really like to hear whose argument/reason is better, and who you think she should fall in love with.**

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Brady's POV

I am scum.

No, I am worse than scum. I am the scum that the less bad scum eats. And somehow, I don't even care, because I like her.

How pathetic is that? That I'm not even sorry I stole my best friend's girl before he even had a chance to go out with her. And I know he's probably right, and I know that the spirits say he belongs with her, but I like her! A lot! And somehow, when I'm with her, or arguing with him, I have trouble remembering how binding an imprint is.

But Dammit! She likes me! She doesn't even like him! He insulted her protest! And…I like her!

Why can't it just be that simple? Why does that stupid werewolf crap have to get in the way of my personal life? And why do I feel so damn guilty while, at the same time, I'm pissed off at Collin for imprinting on her!?

But I like her! How many times do I have to say that before I convince myself it's a good enough reason to do what I'm doing?

I was at my house, holding my phone, debating whether or not I should text Lacey. I really wanted to, there was no doubt about that. But maybe I shouldn't. maybe I should just let fate run it's course with Collin and Lacey. But I really didn't want to.

But he's my best friend! And he's been my best friend since the fifth grade!

Just the my phone vibrated with a text from Lacey. This didn't count right? I don't have to feel guilty if she texts me first. Right?

Hi.

Hey, wats up?

Pissy Missy

LOL

Not funny. Trying to make me eat cows.

Aw.

And the burgers smell good!

Don't succumb!

LOL, I wont.

Just the I got a call from Sam. Crap. I'm supposed to be on patrol. I ignored the call, but got up anyway.

I have to go, I texted Lacey.

:( Aw…

Bye.

Bye.

I got up and went outside, hoping that Collin wasn't phased. No such luck.

Hey traitor! Collin greeted me.

Hey backstabber, I replied.

You stole my soul mate!

No, I'm in love with your soul mate! Who I met before you did!

So!? SOUL MATE!

And!? Like I care.

So you don't even care about her!?

Of course I do Collin! Quit trying to trick me!

Jerk.

Asshole.

TRAITOR!

BACKSTABBER!

Then the world was a mess of flying fur as he lunged at me. I had been expecting it though, and held my own in the fight.

Hey, guys! someone yelled at us, but we were both fighting too hard to figure out who.

Enough! Sam commanded, his voice seeping with Alpha…ness.

We separated, still growling and snarling at each other.

Cut it out you guys! Sam yelled, growling. You're not getting out of patrol, and you're not fighting all night, so either make up or separate!

I wanted to make up with my best friend, but I quickly blocked that thought from my mind. I thought for a moment I heard Collin think the same thing, but I couldn't be sure.

We both patrolled opposite sides of the forest all night, but we still had to share a mind. It was a long night.

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**Hope you liked it! Please review! Team Collin or Team Brady! Let me know!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay, this chapter is where things start to get interesting, you'll see why!**

**I don't own Twilight. I do own the Macarena! Oh, crap, no I don't…Darn.**

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**Missy's POV**

I sighed. Jacob Black. He is so hot! I know I'm only a Sophomore and he's a Senior, but…it could happen!

I hated the fact that I liked someone in Lacey's circle of friends. It was a little strange. But how did she manage to be friends with someone so hot!?

When the teacher dismissed us from last period, I went to find Jacob. I would flirt until either he asked me out, or my tongue fell out of my mouth. But one way or the other, I wasn't getting rejected without a fight.

I finally found him walking with his best friend, Quil and Embry. They were talking quietly. As soon as everyone was out of the hallway, I ducked out of sight and listened carefully.

"-Not his fault." That sounded like Jacob.

"That's true, but just because he imprinted on her doesn't mean that she doesn't get a choice. I mean, Lacey clearly likes Brady." Qui? Why were they talking about my sister? Who was Brady? And what does imprint mean?

"Yeah, but she's Collin's _soul mate_!" Jacob said. "They belong together."

Whoa, what? If Lacey liked Brady, what did they mean by soul mate? Is that what imprinting meant? Finding your soul mate? But what does it mean?

"Yeah, well I'm glad they don't have patrol together for a while. Last time, they got in a huge fight, there was fur flying everywhere!"

Patrol? Fur!?

"Yeah, but Sam kept them out of too much trouble."

"But the death threats running through their minds!" Embry exclaimed. "I mean, sometimes I wish we couldn't hear their thought when we're phased."

The other two agreed.

Phased? Hear each other's thoughts? What does all of it mean!? Wait, phased…didn't I hear something about that somewhere. Hearing their thoughts…when they're phased…fur…Dad's book of legends! Were wolves! No! Not possible! Was it?

I had to find out.

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I couldn't find a single book of legends in the whole house. What is up with that? Seriously!

I sighed. There had to be another way…I got it! If I cant find the books, so I'll go straight to the source. How hard could Collin's house be to find?

Not hard at all. I found out just asking around. Luckily he answered the door.

"Hello Collin," I said.

"Uh, hi…"

"I'm Missy, I'm-"

"Lacey's sister," he finished for me. "Yeah, I know, but why are you here?"

"I need to talk to you. Wanna come outside?"

"Um, okay…" he said, trailing off. He followed me out the door.

"I know everything," I said simply.

"Meaning…?"

"Imprinting, phasing, all the legends," I said. "I know all of it."

His eyes widened. "Who told you!?" he asked.

"You did," I said. "Just now."

He groaned and slapped his forehead. "Okay, so what, you wanna blackmail me?"

I shook my head. "No, nothing like that," I said. "I want to know what all this has to do with my sister."

He groaned again. "Well, did you figure out imprinting?"

I nodded slowly. "It's sort of when a werewolf finds a soul mate, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah, sort of. From the moment he sees her, he can never leave her."

"And you imprinted on Lacey?" I asked tentatively.

He nodded again. "But Brady met her first and kind of has a crush on her. And she likes him back. And I really want her to be happy…"

I looked at him. He looked so sincere. "Well, not that it's any of my business, but, you'd rather her like you, right?"

"More than anything," he said.

I nodded. "I think It could work out."

He looked at me with a surprised expression. "What?"

"Well, what if Brady imprints? And what if Lacey finds out that you imprinted one her? I know Lacey, and she'll be _pissed_ that Brady screwed over his best friend."

He nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah…" he said, trailing off. "Yeah, maybe you're right…"

"And you have to be there to pick up the pieces if one of those things happens."

"Yeah!" he said, hopefully. "But you can't tell her!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide. "You can't tell anyone."

"Like anyone would believe me," I snorted. "Anyway, I have to go. See ya."

"Bye."

What just happened here?

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**Like it, love it, hate it? Let me know! Click that review button! By the way, I'm a great Beta, so if you need one let me know because I'm bored!!!!  
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	6. Chapter 6

**I liked the last chapter, writing from Missy's POV was fun. She's not as self-centered as she seems. Anyway, this chapter is some more drama. This chapter's a little short, it's just a filler. Hope you like it! Let me know! **

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Collin's POV

Maybe Missy was right. Maybe I just needed to wait for things to work out.

But I couldn't do that! I needed to be with her! She's was so…amazing! Beautiful, smart, nice, passionate. I just wanted her to be happy, but more than anything I wanted her to be happy with _me_!

I sighed. The teacher was going on and on about some dead poet who wrote some famous poem I've never even heard of.

That's when I decided it. As soon as the teacher dismissed us, I was going to find Lacey and ask her out. I was going to do it.

After that time sped up. I had no idea what I was going to say. I wasn't ready, and school would be over in a few minutes. What was I going to ask her!?

"Class dismissed," Mr. Layton said. I sighed, racing to find her. She was walking with Brady. They were laughing over something. I was about to ask her if I could talk to her when I heard:

"So, Friday night then?" Brady asked. She nodded.

"Great," he said. "I'll pick you up around six." She smiled, then waved at him as they went separate ways. I felt my heart break in half. I walked up to her.

"Hey Lacey," I said nervously.

"Oh, hi Collin," she said flatly.

"I'm sorry if I, uh, offended you the other day, when we were talking about the protest…" That was the first thing I could think of to say!?!? What is wrong with me!?

"It's alright," she said flatly. Si sighed. "So, um, are you doing anything Saturday?" I asked uncomfortably.

She looked about as uncomfortable I felt. "I, uh, yeah, actually, I'm going to the mall in Port Angeles with my sister." I could tell she made it up on the spot.

"Oh," was all I could think to say. "Well, okay."

Then I walked away, deciding I'd been humiliated enough for one day.

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**Psssst! Hey! Yeah, you! Yes, you there, with the face! Don't look now, but right there...yes, there, that button, the one that says review...I told you not to look! Now you have to click it!  
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	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, this chapter's going to be a little longer than the other chapters, hope you like it! Please review!**

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"Missy?" I asked through her door.

"Yeah?" she asked, and I heard her smack her gum. I cannot believe I am doing this.

"Will you…will you help me get ready?" I asked through gritted teeth.

"Get ready for what?" she asked curiously.

"I have a date with Brady!" I exclaimed.

She opened her door, a strange expression on her face. "Are you sure?" she asked.

I nodded slowly. "Uh, yeah…"

"Not Collin?" she said carefully.

"No, I don't like Collin."

"Oh, um, okay, I just thought…never mind, I'm happy for you! You have a date with Brady! Okay, come one, I'll do your hair!"

She seemed so excited. But I couldn't get over the fact that she had reacted so strangely to my news. Collin? Why would I go out with Collin? "Ow!" I yelled as she came dangerously close to burning my ear.

"Oh quit whining," she said, and I could practically hear her roll her eyes. I did the same.

After she did my hair she moved on to makeup. She put on mascara, blush, and lip gloss. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I didn't recognize myself.

"Wow," I said. "Thanks Missy. I look great."

She grinned. "Yeah, you do."

I started to go into my room. "Where are you going?" Missy asked me.

"To get dressed?" I said, but it came out as a question.

"No you're not," she said. "Because you don't have anything even remotely date worth. Put this in," she said, throwing me a denim mini skirt and a purple V-neck sweater.

"Fine," I said, whining a little. I wanted to argue, but it was really cute, and I wanted Brady to think I looked good.

About five minutes after I got dressed, there was knock at the door. I took a deep breath.

"I'll get it!" I yelled, even though no one else was going to the door.

"Hi Brady," I said, opening the door.

"Hi Lacey," he replied. "You look…" he trailed off as if searching for words.

"Ridiculous?" I suggested.

"I was going for beautiful," he said, smiling.

"Aw! Aren't you guys just the cutest!" Missy said, rolling her eyes.

I turned to glare at my sister, leaning against the doorway.

"Come on Lacey," Brady said. "We're going to be late. I made _reservations_."

"Bye dad!" I yelled.

"Yeah, Bye," I heard him mutter from the living room, too engrossed in the TV to properly answer.

"So," I said, walking to his car. "Why the emphasis on _reservations_?"

"Well," he said, opening the door for me. "I never go to dinner, so I never get to make _reservations_."

We made small talk for the rest of the car ride. It was a little uncomfortable, but not overly so.

When we got to the restaurant, Brady walked around to open my door for me, but I got out before he reached the other side. He mock-glared at me.

"I was going to open it for you."

"Sorry to tell you this," I said, pretending to be serious. "But chivalry is dead."

He hung his head in mock disappointment.

When we got into the restaurant, some place In Forks, Brady walked up to the lady standing by a podium and said, "I have _reservations_ under Brady." I laughed when he emphasized reservations again.

The lad showed to our table and we looked at the menus. I didn't know what to order. Most of the salads had meat in them. There was almost nothing vegetarian.

"Everything here has meat in it!" he exclaimed.

"No, I can get a salad of something," I said.

"Wrong!" he said. "Did you think I was going to sit here and eat something with meat in it while you're there with some little bowl of lettuce?" He laughed. "Come on," he said. "Let's go."

"We're leaving?" I asked, confused. "We just got here."

"This place is boring," he said. I laughed.

When we were back in the car, he asked me where I wanted to go.

"I don't know," I said. "What has stuff without meat?"

He contemplated that for a moment, then grinned and started driving. Before I knew it, we were parked in front of a grocery store. "What are we doing here?" I asked.

He grinned. "We're getting picnic supplies," he announced. "Come on."

I smiled. We bought potato salad, sandwich stuff and salad. Then we got back in the car and drove to the park in La Push.

Having a picnic turned out to be a great idea. It was so fun, and we ate everything. After we ate, it started raining, and we ran into the woods to be under cover.

"Lacey," Brady said, his face serious.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Can you keep a secret?"

"Of course I can!"

"That was probably bad wording. What I meant to say is, can you handle a secret,"

"I think so. Why?"

"Well…" he trailed off, looking uncomfortable. "You-you've heard the tribes legends, right?"

"Yeah, about the wolves. I used to love those stories when I was little. I thought they were true."

"Surprise!" he exclaimed.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"They are true," he said.

"Uh-huh, sure," I said.

"No, Lacey-"

"Yeah, okay, I get it. I make Save the Wolves posters, and so you make fun of me. Just because I believe in something! That's really low," I said, getting up and starting to walk away.

"Lacey!" he yelled. "I can prove it!"

I stopped and turned around. "This should be good," I said.

He sighed and walked into the woods. A few moments later, a giant wolf appeared in the clearing. I nearly choked on the air around me.

The wolf, appearing to notice me stiffen, stopped in his tracks. It looked at mea, and it's eyes were almost…pleading,

"B-Brady?" I asked cautiously. Oh great, now I'm going insane.

The wolf nodded. Nodded! A giant wolf just nodded at me! Oh my god.

I stepped closer, and the wolf stepped back.

"Just stay there," I said quietly. It did.

I reached forward and touched the wolf's fur. It was soft and warm. I wanted to hug the wolf, but I was afraid that would be weird.

"Wow," was all I could say. "Could you, uh, change back now?"

The wolf backed away, looking at me the whole time. A few moments later, Brady walked out of the woods.

I blinked, not knowing what to say.

"You weren't joking," I said.

He grinned. "Nope. I'm really a giant furry wolf."

"Wow."

"Yeah. You cool? You look a little pale."

"It's…a lot to take in," I said honestly.

"Well, I get it if you don't want to hang out with me any more. I mean, it's pretty weird…"

"Are your friends wolves too," I said, plainly ignoring his question.

He grinned. "Yeah. Jacob, Quil, Embry, Seth, Collin, Sam, Jared, Paul, and Leah?"

I didn't recognize some of the last names, but I nodded thoughtfully.

"So, you still like me, even though I turn into a giant wolf?" he asked.

"Yeah, I still like you. A lot."

He leaned forward, and so did I. It took a minute, but finally our lips met. It was amazing.

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**Ooh! A little romance going on here! Whoo! Let me know what you think, okay?**


	8. Chapter 8

**Missy's POV**

"What happened!?" I practically yelled as Lacey walking in the door. She had this grin on her face, and she was half-floating to her room.

She ignored me, opening her door. I grabbed it as she was about to close it, and I went and sat on her bed.

"What happened!?!?" I screamed.

She grinned at me. "He kissed me!" she squealed. I jumped into the air. "Way to go Lace!" I yelled.

"We went to this restaurant in Forks," she said. "But they didn't have anything without meat, so we left, and bought picnic stuff at the grocery store. Then we had a picnic at the park, and we went into the woods and talked. Then he kissed me!"

"Talked about what?" I asked, wondering if she knew the secret.

"Stuff," she said defensively. Oh my god, she did know!

"Oh, it's fine," I said. "I already know."

"No, I don't think so," she said quietly.

"About the wolf thing?" I asked, raising my eyebrows triumphantly as her jaw dropped.

"How did you know!?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"I have my ways," I said. "Collin told me."

"Collin?" she asked, her eyebrows pulling together in confusion.

"Well, you see, I heard Jacob and Embry and Quil talking about how Brady likes you but Collin imprinted on you. I also overheard them say a few other things about the wolves, so I went to Collin's house and sort of tricked him into telling me everything." I grinned evilly.

"Imprinted?" she asked. "What does that mean."

I felt my face turn red. She didn't know! Oh crap. "What?" I asked. "I don't know what you mean."

"Yeah you do," she said. "You just said Brady likes me but Collin 'imprinted on me. What does that mean?"

"Uh, well, er…"

"Missy, you're never at a loss for words! You always have something to say about everything! Unless you're trying to lie to me! You've never been good at that! I can tell!"

"Okay!" I yelled. "I'll tell you. Just, don't get mad at me, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed.

"Well," I said. "Imprinting is like a werewolf finding their soul mate. They look into their eyes one time, and BAM! They're completely whipped. Anything you ask he'd do for you. He can never leave you."

She looked like she couldn't breathe. I wondered if I should get dad. Then she took a deep breath and sat on the bed.

"Soul mate?" she asked. I nodded. "I'm _Collin's_ soul mate?"

"I'm so sorry Lacey," I said.

"I…" she trailed off. "If only there was…"

"If only there was what?" I asked.

"I could go talk to Emily!' she exclaimed.

"Who?"

"The pack leader's imprint! She'd know what to do! Brady was telling me when he drove me back that she's like the pack's mother!"

"Good idea!" I said. "Can I come?" I asked.

She looked pained for a moment before relaxing and saying, "I guess. You already know anyway."

"Gee, thanks for the compliment." I rolled my eyes. So did she.

We looked in the phone book for the address o Emily Uley. It wasn't too hard to find.

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**Lacey's POV**

I knocked on the door. A woman answered. One half of her face was beautiful. She had brown, almost shaped eyes and full lips. The other side of her face saw completely scarred. It looked like an animal had dragged it's claws down one side of her face. My stomach clenched together as I realized that's completely possible.

"Uh, hi," I said. "I'm Lacey Coleman, and this is my sister Missy."

The woman smiled. "I'm Emily Uley."

"Can we…talk to you?" I asked.

"Of course," she said, gesturing for us to come inside.

We sat on the couch. "Sam and the rest of the boys are out," she said.

"On patrol?" Missy and I asked at the same time. Emily looked taken aback. Then she regained her poise and said, "Oh, of course. I forgot you both knew. Well, yes, they are on patrol."

"I was wondering," I said. "You're an imprint, right?"

She grinned. "Yes."

"Well, is it supposed to work both ways?"

He smile fell slightly. "I'm not sure," she said. "I can't imagine living without Sam, but I don't know if that's how it always is."

I nodded. "And if I didn't feel that way about him, would it hurt him?" I almost didn't want her to answer.

"Yes," she said, quietly. "It would hurt him very much. But he wants you to be happy."

I nodded. "I can't help it!" I cried. "I just don't feel about Collin the same way I feel about Brady!"

She hugged me. "It's okay. No one's judging you. You've just been dragged into this world of mythical creatures."

Missy and I nodded. "I think that it's stupid that the guys don't get a choice of who they love," Missy said. "I mean, would Collin even like her without the imprint?"

Emily looked thoughtful for a moment. "It depends," she said.

"On what?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Lots of things. If he already had someone, he wouldn't, or if he hadn't met you. But if you ran into each other and started talking, Collin's a nice boy, I'm sure he'd like you even without the imprint."

I nodded thoughtfully.

"But I don't like him like that," I said quietly. "I like Brady. But Brady asked me out even though I'm supposed his best friend's soul mate. That's a pretty horrible thing to do. And what if he imprints on someone else?"

Emily sighed. "You just have to ask yourself if you like Brady enough to risk that."

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**Does she!? I don't know. Reviews are love! Tell me if you're Team Collin or Team Brady!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Ok, this is for all of you who were Team Collin! Thanks for reading!**

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Brady's POV

I hate waiting in lines!

Waiting in the lunch line at school.

Waiting in line at the amusement park.

Waiting in line at the mall.

And now waiting in line at the grocery store so I could buy my mom a bell pepper. Seriously, one bell pepper, and it looked like I'd still be waiting in line ten minutes from now. I was dying to get home. I had left my cell phone at home and I really wanted to call Lacey.

She hadn't answered any of my texts since the day I told her about the wolf secret. She talked to me at school, but not very much. And she completely ignored looking at Collin. Strangely enough, she spoke to Jacob, Seth, Quil, and Embry. A lot. So it wasn't the wolf thing that was bothering her. So what was it?

Did she find out about the imprinting thing? No, that couldn't be it, because then she would be ignoring one of us or the other, probably Collin, but not both of us. What could it be?

I looked at the other people in line. Some old lady buying cat food (a bunch of cat food), a young woman with three kids of various ages, and a girl…

A beautiful, gorgeous, amazing, wonderful girl…

What just happened? I looked back at the girl. I didn't recognize her, but she was amazing.

I realized later that I must have dropped the pepper, but at the moment I didn't notice. All that mattered was getting to that girl and finding out who she was.

I walked up to her. "Hi," I said. "I'm Brady."

She smiled at me, and I almost melted into a big puddle of werewolf. "I'm Kathy," she said.

I looked into her chopping basket, desperate for a conversation topic. "So, you like chocolate?" I asked stupidly, seeing that that was all she bought.

She grinned. "Just a little," she said sarcastically.

"I love chocolate," I said.

"Well," she said, "You must eat something, dud you are huge! I mean, not in a bad way, but dude, I can see up your nose."

I laughed. "Yeah, well I'm looking at the top of your head," I said. It was true, too, because she was maybe five foot two. She laughed.

"Come here," she said, waving me downward. I leaned down. "Closer," she said. I bent down so that I was eye level with her. She flicked me in the head.

"Ow!" I exclaimed.

"You don't make fun of my height," she said. "Ever. Especially if you're about to ask for my number."

I gawked at her. "What?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes. " 'So, you like chocolate?' Come on, you can do better than that! But since I like you, I'll give you my number anyway." She pulled a pen out of her purse and wrote her number on a small piece of paper.

As she walked away, I watched her go. Then suddenly, I thought:

Oh crap. Lacey.

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"Lacey, I'm sorry!"

I had yelled the same thing almost fifteen times, but she was still going. It was like she didn't even need to breathe.

"You lying, stupid, effing asshole…" I tried to tune her out, but the guilt was almost unbearable.

"Lacey!" I yelled loudly, cutting her off. She was silent, staring at me. "It's not my fault! Imprinting is involuntary! But now I have to be with her."

She stared at my as if I'd grown an extra head. "You effing hypocrite!" she yelled. "You asked me out knowing Collin imprinted on me!" I wasn't aware that she knew that. "And even though you could have imprinted you asked me out. You knew you were probably going to break my heart!" She screamed.

"Get out," she said quietly. I didn't move. "Get out!" she screamed. She ran into her room. A moment later, an incredibly pissed looking Missy came in and started yelling where her sister had left off. "You broke her heart! You knew you might imprint, but you still screwed over your best friend, and you broke my sister's heart! Get out of our house!"

I had never seen the preppy, bubbly Missy with this look on her face. She really cared about her sister. I left quietly.

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**Well, there you go. Well, those of you who have been waiting for Collin and Lacey to get together, you're going to have to wait a little longer, but we're getting there!**


	10. Chapter 10

Collin's POV

I was walking down the beach. I was a little lonely, but that was the point of coming here. To just be alone with my thoughts. Lacey indifference towards me was killing me. I wanted her to love me. Heck, I could live with her just _liking_ me!

I heard a strange sound behind me. It was somewhere between a muffled sob and a hiccup. I turned around to see Lacey crying about twenty feet away, her feet in the water.

"Your feet are going to freeze," I said.

She turned, a surprised look on her face. "Oh! Collin! I didn't see you there…"

I went to sit by her. "What's wrong?" I asked.

She shook her head. "It's nothing," she said, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"It's not nothing," I said. "Something's wrong. Just tell me."

"It's just…Brady. He imprinted on some girl."

My entire body filled with rage. That asshole had broken her heart! I would never have done that.

"He _did what_!?" I yelled. "He made you cry!? I'll kill him!"

She smiled. "Thanks," she said. "But you don't have to do that."

"Why not? He hurt you! He knew he would hurt you and he did it anyway! That jerk!"

"Yeah," she said. "He is. l but not just for that. He totally screwed you over."

I looked at her with confusion.

"Well, you did imprint on me," she said.

I felt my face turn red. "You know," I asked. She nodded. "But you still don't like me like that." I didn't pose it as a question.

"I'm sorry," she said, still not looking at me.

"It's okay. I understand."

"Can we be friends?" I asked.

She nodded. "I'd like that," she said. "But is it going to be weird?"

I shook my head. "Zero weirdness," I said. "I would really, really like to be friends."

She smiled. "Thanks for cheering me up," she said. "But will you promise me something?"

"Anything," I said.

"Forgive Brady."

"What?"

"He's your best friend, and I know that ever since I showed up you guys have been fighting. I don't want to be in the middle of that."

"It's not your fault," I said quickly.

"I didn't say it was," she said. "But you guys are best friends. I know that if me and my best friend Carly got in a fight over a guy, I would definitely feel pretty stupid after it was all said and done."

I nodded thoughtfully. "So, your best friend's name is Carly?" I asked, over exaggerating interest. She laughed.

"Not the point," she said, smiling. "Just think about it, okay?"

I nodded.

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And I did. I thought about it all the was home, and when I got home, and as I was walking over to his house, and as I was knocking on his door. And when I saw him, I couldn't forgive him for hurting Lacey.

"You asshole!" was the first thing out of my mouth.

He hung his head. "I know. But it's not my fault, it's involun-"

"Hypocrite!" I yelled. "You didn't believe that I couldn't help it, but now you're trying to use that same defense!? That's not right!"

"Dude, I know! Just stop yelling at me!"

"I will not! You hurt her!"

"And I didn't want to! I really liked her! But I want her to like you now! Now she can be with you, so why are you so pissed!?"

I realized that I hadn't thought of it like that. "I guess you're kind of right…" I said trailing off.

"I'm sorry," he said, sounding sincere.

"And I'm sorry I yelled at you," I said. "Are we cool?"

"Yeah," he said, smiling. "We're cool."

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**Aw! Brady ad Collin made up! And Lacey and Collin are friends! So, the story's over, right? Wrong!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Thanks for the reviews you guys, they really keep me motivated! Okay, I realized that almost none of you were Team Brady. Now, he_was_**** a total asshole, but for the record, Lacey likes **_**him**_**, not Collin. I'm not giving anything away though, okay? Just read!**

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"Dad!?" I yelled.

"Yeah?"

"What's for dinner?"

"Uh, hamburgers," he replied, sounding uncomfortable. "I thought you could fix yourself something."

That jerk! He was totally unsupportive! I just wanted to be like Mom! She loved me. Missy was always a Daddy's' Girl, but I was always trying to be just like Mom. When she left, she took a huge part of me with her.

_Salem, _a voice in my head said.

Whoa. That was weird. What the hell? Was I going crazy?

_No Sweetie, I wont go without you…_

Holy shit! That's my mom's voice! Oh my god. I closed my eyes, begging for the memory to come back completely.

**************************FLASHBACK!**************************

"_Mom," I said. I was lying on the floor next to my mother. We did that sometimes. Just lie down wherever we happened to be in the house and talk._

"_Yeah?" she asked._

"_If you could live one place that wasn't here in Denver, where would it be?"_

_She thought for a moment. "Salem," she said finally. "I grew up there, with my parents and brothers. It's my happy place."_

"_But you wouldn't go without me, would you?" I asked._

"_Never."_

***********************FLASHBACK!**************************

And I had believed her. Because she's my mother, and I was ten. God, I had been so naïve. Then an idea came to me, and I jumped off the bed to my laptop, sitting on my desk.

After my mom left, I had tried for a week straight to locate her. But with no idea where she was going, it was impossible. I opened , and searched for Andrea Coleman in Salem Oregon. No results. I was about to start crying when I tried Andrea Butler Hughes. One result. She was living in Salem.

Without thinking I pulled an old duffel bag out of my closet and started packing. Within ten minutes I was ready to go. Still on a sort of adrenaline high, I opened my window and climbed out. I was just outside the gate when I realized I didn't want to go alone. So I went to the only person I had left.

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"I'm leaving," I told Collin when he answered his door.

"What?" he asked, his eyes widening.

"I'm going to find my mother. She's in Salem."

"Portland?"

"No," I said sarcastically, "Portugal. Yes, Portland. And I'm going to find her."

"You can't," he said frantically.

"Look, I didn't come to ask your permission, I came here because I don't want to go alone and you're the only person I have left."

"That's not…" he trailed off.

"It is and you know it. Look, I have to go soon, who knows how long until my dad and Missy realize I'm gone. Are you coming?"

He looked pained. "You know I don't want to let you…it's so dangerous…"

"Fine," I said, starting to walk away.

"It's so dangerous," he said again. "That I have to come so I can protect you. Come on, I have a car."

Brady packed in five minutes, pulling a jar of cash out of one of his drawers.

"In case we need it," he said.

"I know what you mean," I replied. "I've got all my savings in the back."

We were out of La Push pretty quickly. He drove and I counted out money. We have a little over six hundred dollars to get us to Salem. I tried not to think the words _and back_.

We drove seven hours straight before we gave up and had to go to bed. After considering for about ten minutes, we decided it would be better to pull into a rest stop and sleep in the car, then drive then entire way to Salem tomorrow.

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**Whoa! One their way to Salem! Looking for Lacey's mom could go good, or it could go bad, and I'm not telling! Hahaha! REVIEW!**


	12. Chapter 12

When I woke up, we were driving again.

"How long have we been driving?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.

Collin turned to look at me. "A couple hours," he said smiling.

"You should have woken me up," I said.

He shrugged. "You looked tired. You wanna stop and get something to eat?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I didn't eat dinner yesterday."

We pulled into the Subway parking lot. When we got our food, we decided that we'd been driving enough, and we deserved to sit down inside for a while.

"So," I said, "How far are we from Salem?"

"About an hour." **(Sorry, I don't know how far Salem is from Forks, but I way overestimated I think, because by now they've been driving, like, ten hours. Oops!) **I nodded.

"So, are you ready to see your mom?" he asked.

"I…don't really know, actually. I mean, I've been waiting four years, and I love my mom, but I'm also really angry that she left us. I mean, how could she do that?"

He nodded thoughtfully. "What are you going to say to her?"

"I'm not sure yet. I'll wait and see what my mind tells me to blurt out when I see her."

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We didn't speak for the rest of the trip. Finally, we pulled into an apartment complex. It was the same one the computer had said my mother lived at. I pulled out the small piece of paper with her address on it. Within moments I was standing in front of the door that my mother could very possibly be standing right on the other side of. I took a deep breath and knocked.

The door opened and a girl a little older than me with shoulder length, bright purple hair appeared. "Hi, who-" she began, then stopped, staring at me.

"Oh," she said. "You'd better come in. You're Lacey, right?"

I nodded. She looked at Collin suspiciously. "This is my friend Collin," I said.

"Where's the other girl?" she asked.

"Missy's not here."

"Oh. Well, your mom should be back in about an hour," she said. "She's at an art show."

I nodded. "How did you recognize me so easily?" I asked.

"From the pictures your dad sends her. She has them hung up all over her room."

I stopped breathing. I couldn't believe it. All this time ha had led us to believe she was gone and he had no idea where she was. But he was contacting her!? I started to cry, and I felt a warm arm around my shoulders.

"Oh!" the girl said. "I'm Alana by the way. I'm your mom's roommate."

I nodded, not really wanting to talk. She seemed to sense that, and led me into my mother's room.

The walls were covered in pictures and paintings. Some of the paintings I recognized, and the newer ones were unfamiliar. There were pictures of me and Missy at every age, and a picture of all four of us: me, my mom, my dad, and Missy. A family.

I don't know how long I sat on my mother's bed, crying, with Collin's arm around me, but the next thing I knew, a faintly familiar voice said from the front room, "Alana! I sold it!"

"That's great!" Alana said. "But I, uh, there's someone here to…" She trailed off as my mother walked into her room.

Our eyes met for a moment. "Mom," I said.

"Lacey," she whispered before throwing her arms around me. "Sweetie!"

I pulled away, glaring at her. She hung her head. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I was going to ask you the same question," I replied through gritted teeth.

"Sweetie, you know I needed to be free to-"

"Free!? You needed to be free from your family!? Your daughters who cried endlessly when you left them and your husband who had no idea how to take care of two teenage girls!"

"Neither did I!" she yelled. "I can't be stuck with you three! I couldn't be the wife and mother type! I need to be able to paint!"

"Bull shit!" I yelled. "Straight up, flat our bull shit! You could have painted at home. You could have taken a week vacation and painted anywhere you wanted to! You didn't want us! I know that! But why not!?"

"Honey, I did want you. I wanted you so much. But I couldn't do it. You needed me there to talk about things, and make dinner, and got to school plays and sports games. I couldn't do all that!"

"I'm your daughter!" I yelled. "I'm your freaking daughter! And you have to make sacrifices to have a family! And I wouldn't have minded if you'd had to miss a couple school plays. And Missy wouldn't have minded if you'd missed her soccer games. We wanted you there, and you just left. You packed up and left, and you have no excuse for that."

She glared at me. "You want to blame me for your sister's bratty behavior? Or your father's constant nagging? Or the fact that you expected me to be this _idol_! You wanted to be just like me, and I had to be there for you!"

There were tears streaming down my eyes. "You're blaming me for you leaving!? It's my fault that I trusted my mother!? I loved you! And I didn't expect you to be perfect! Because no matter what you did, I would have seen you as prefect anyway. But not anymore. After four years, I think I've finally accepted that you aren't the kind of mother I need."

"What! You need me! You are my daughter! You would never have been _born_ without me!"

"No, I don't need you! I need_ed _you! Not anymore!" I yelled. "But I still want you," I said, my voice quieter.

"Well too bad!" she yelled. "You and your little sister have your father! I cant be a mother! I can't! You kept me caged in that house! I had to cook and clean, and work painting around being a mother! I never wanted to be a mother! So just get out so I can get back to my life!"

I felt tears streaming down my face. I turned to Collin, who wrapped his arms around me. We left the apartment. As we did, I head Alana whisper, "I'm so sorry."

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We didn't speak on the way home. At all. We drove all the way through, and right when we passed the sign for Forks, I fell asleep.

"What the hell!?" I heard my dad yell. I couldn't tell what was going on, but I think Collin was carrying me inside.

"Sir, she wanted to see her mother. I tried to talk her out of it, but she refused to stay. I couldn't let her go alone. But there was a…problem. It was bad. She hasn't said a word since her mother screamed at her and kicked her out of her apartment."

I heard my dad say something softer, not as angry. He understood. He knew.

"Put her on her bed," my dad said. If everything hadn't been so wrong, I would have laughed that my dad knew he wasn't strong enough o carry me inside.

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**Oh no! Lacey's mother is a total psycho! What is she going to do? Is she going to be able to recover from the shock and trauma and downright depression? Will Collin be able to help her?**


	13. Chapter 13

**Okay, this is the last real chapter. The next one's like an epilogue/segway to the sequel that I HAVE DECIDED TO WRITE! Enjoy and Review!  
**

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**Collin's POV**

She didn't speak. To anyone. For a week. An entire week, and she said, literally, not one word. I know this because the next day, her father came to my house.

I guess he felt the need to explain to me about Lacey's mother. His exact words were, "You're a part of this now. You deserve to know."

Then he took me for a drive. It was kind of funny, in a twisted sort of way. Most dad's take their sons boyfriend for a drive to threaten their lives if they hurt their little girl. Lacey's dad was taking the werewolf who imprinted on her for a drive to explain her psychotic mother to him.

"She was…different as a child. As a teen she was on anti-depressants. As an adult, all I saw her as was a beautiful, brilliant, artistic woman. I looked past the mental issues, and we got married. Things were great at first. She was amazing."

"Then we started having problems. She thought I was cheating on her. She convinced herself of it. Then she got pregnant with Lacey. That seemed like the end of the problems. She was happy all the time, excited. She single-handedly decorated the nursery and shopped for any and everything baby related. We had Lacey, and she was thrilled. This was _her_ baby."

He was silent for a moment, but I was sure this wasn't the end of his speech, so I didn't say anything. Then he sighed and continued.

"Then she got pregnant with Missy. She was a little stressed to have a little baby and be pregnant again, but all the same she was thrilled. She painted in all her spare time. Bright, colorful paintings. I was ecstatic, my wife was in a wonderful mood and I had one, soon to be two, beautiful little girls. Things were going well. Then she had Missy. Everything was fine for the next five years. Even when Lacey was in Kindergarten, things were alright. She was stressed a lot, but it was okay."

"Then the girls got a little older. Lacey was only about eight when her mother cracked. I don't think Missy remembers, and Lacey has completely blocked it out. Her mother was cooking dinner. I was at work. I don't know what happened, but when I got home, Andrea was on the kitchen floor, holding a knife, her wrists bleeding. Missy was in her room, I don't even know if she knew what was going on. But Lacey was in the kitchen with her mother. She was crying, and Andrea was yelling at her, telling her to stop crying because she didn't need her anyway."

He paused a took a deep breath, and I could tell he was trying hard to keep his composure.

"They took her to a…psychiatric ward for a few days. Lacey completely shut down for that time. It scared me even more than what her mother did. When Andrea came back, Lacey would only talk to her. She would hold onto her mother like if she let her out of her sight, she would disappear. Andrea wanted to pretend like nothing had ever happened, but I finally convinced her to let me find Lacey a therapist."

"We hadn't brought up her mother's breakdown at all in the home. We were there while she was talking to the therapist. The doctor asked her about school, and life, and stuff at home. She spoke as if nothing was wrong. But when we got into the incident, she froze up. All she said was, 'I don't know what you mean.' She just kept repeating that. Saying that she didn't know what we were talking about."

"After a while, we could see it in her eyes, that she had blocked it out so much, she honestly couldn't even remember it. But no matter what, if anyone accidently brings it up, she freezes. Completely shuts down. And I think that this most recent episode reminded her of that."

I was about to speak when he motioned for me to be silent. "I'm not quite finished."

"After that, things were…weird. Andrea was okay, but something in her eyes was just…dead. She got really stressed if she needed to go to a PTA meeting or a soccer game, but she refused not to go. Then one day, she just stopped doing anything. A few days later, she packed up and left. After that, I didn't hear from her until about a year later, when she begged me to send her the girl's school pictures. That's the only thing I've contacted her about since."

He sighed. "Any questions?"

"No," I said. "But I do want to tell you something. I know that Lacey…doesn't like me the way I like her, but I really, really like her. And I know Brady hurt her, but I wont do that, Sir. I want to be there for her, and I know she hasn't come out of her room, or said anything since we got back, but I want to make sure she's okay. Would it be alright if I stopped by a couple times?"

He smiled. "I think that'd be good for her. You're a good kid, Collin."

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So it's been a week since then. Nothing. I stop by every other day, and I call every day, but she's not speaking to anyone. She eats a little, but only when someone brings her something. Sometimes me or Missy will go in and sit on her bed and talk to her. Once or twice she's looked at us, and once she even waved to me when I left, but other than that, it's like she's dead.

It was a week and two days after the incident. I went to see how Lacey was doing after school. Lacey's dad had taken too many days off in a row, and needed to go into the office today so he could stay off as long as Lacey needed, so he let Missy stay home to take care of her and he was still at work.

I didn't bother knocking. This was a habit I'd developed. I walked into the kitchen, where Missy was looking through the cupboards for something to eat. She waved to me and smiled slightly. I waved back. "Anything," I asked, with not much hope. She shook her head. I walked into Lacey's room.

"Hey Lace," I said conversationally. She didn't move from her position on the bed. She didn't acknowledge me, but her eyes flickered to me before returning to their fixed spot on the wall.

"School's been boring without you. But I'm not rushing you. You take as long as you need. I understand. Your dad explained everything to me. And I'm not going to tell you to forget about it, because she's your mom. And you need her. Just don't let bad memories rule your life, okay?"

She didn't move. "Well, I kind of have a whole lot of homework," I said. "But I'll come back tomorrow, okay?"

I started to walk out of the room, but a small voice asked me, "Collin, can I have a hamburger?"

My head whipped around in the direction of Lacey's voice. She was looking at me sadly. Suddenly she sat up. "Please?"

"Uh, yeah, of course," I said, shocked. "I'll, uh, I'll be right back…"

I walked into the kitchen.

"Uh, Missy," I said. She looked at me.

"She wants a hamburger."

Missy's eyes nearly popped out of her head and she dropped the pan she was holding. "W-what?" she asked.

"She just sat up and asked me for a hamburger," I said. "I'm just as confused as you are, but I think we should bring her a burger. I thinks that maybe she was a vegetarian because your mom was and she's maybe starting to realize that she doesn't have to be like her."

Missy nodded. "Uh, yeah," she said, opening the fridge. She pulled out a leftover container with hamburgers in it. She stuck a hamburger in the microwave. Then she pulled out a bag of buns- why am I telling you this? You know how to make a hamburger!

When she was done she handed me the plate and followed me into Lacey's room. She was sitting right where she was when I left.

"Uh, here ya go Lacey," I said, handing her the plate. She looked at it for a moment before taking a big bite. Then she looked up at me almost guiltily, then she smiled and said, "I love burgers."

I looked at her, then at Missy. I was sure her shocked expression mirrored mine.

Lacey ate the entire burger in, like, three minutes. She seemed happier when she was done. Like she had passed this giant milestone in her life. Then, before I knew what was happening, she got up out of bed, threw her arms around my neck, and kissed me.

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**Aw! That's so great! I get really attached to my characters, and I love it when they und up happy! I'm going to write, like, two or three more chapters, but I need to know if you guys want a sequel okay? SO REVIEW!**


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